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During the autumn month of October on Lifou island, a traditional twin-hulled vessel was pushed into the lagoon – a seemingly minor event that signified a deeply symbolic moment.

It was the maiden journey of a traditional canoe on Lifou in generations, an event that united the island’s primary tribal groups in a uncommon display of togetherness.

Mariner and advocate Aile Tikoure was instrumental in the launch. For the previous eight-year period, he has led a initiative that seeks to restore ancestral vessel construction in New Caledonia.

Dozens of canoes have been constructed in an initiative aimed at reconnecting local Kanak populations with their maritime heritage. Tikoure states the boats also facilitate the “beginning of dialogue” around sea access rights and conservation measures.

Global Outreach

During the summer month of July, he travelled to France and met President Emmanuel Macron, pushing for ocean governance shaped with and by Indigenous communities that honor their maritime heritage.

“Forefathers always traveled by water. We abandoned that practice for a while,” Tikoure explains. “Currently we’re rediscovering it again.”

Traditional vessels hold significant historical meaning in New Caledonia. They once symbolised movement, trade and clan alliances across islands, but those traditions declined under colonisation and outside cultural pressures.

Cultural Reclamation

The initiative began in 2016, when the New Caledonia heritage ministry was considering how to reintroduce traditional canoe-building skills. Tikoure collaborated with the authorities and after two years the vessel restoration program – known as Project Kenu Waan – was established.

“The most difficult aspect was not wood collection, it was convincing people,” he says.

Project Achievements

The initiative aimed to restore ancestral sailing methods, train young builders and use canoe-making to reinforce community pride and island partnerships.

To date, the organization has organized a showcase, published a book and enabled the construction or restoration of around 30 canoes – from Goro to Ponerihouen.

Material Advantages

Unlike many other oceanic nations where tree loss has reduced lumber availability, New Caledonia still has appropriate timber for constructing major boats.

“Elsewhere, they often use marine plywood. Here, we can still carve solid logs,” he states. “This creates a crucial distinction.”

The boats built under the initiative combine oceanic vessel shapes with regional navigation methods.

Academic Integration

Beginning this year, Tikoure has also been instructing navigation and heritage building techniques at the local university.

“This marks the initial occasion these subjects are taught at advanced education. This isn’t academic – these are experiences I’ve experienced. I’ve sailed vast distances on these canoes. I’ve experienced profound emotion doing it.”

Pacific Partnerships

Tikoure sailed with the team of the traditional boat, the heritage craft that journeyed to Tonga for the oceanic conference in 2024.

“From Hawaii to Rapa Nui, including our location, it’s the same movement,” he states. “We’re restoring the sea collectively.”

Policy Advocacy

During the summer, Tikoure travelled to the European location to share a “Indigenous perspective of the sea” when he met with Macron and government representatives.

Addressing official and overseas representatives, he advocated for collaborative ocean management based on Kanak custom and community involvement.

“We must engage them – most importantly fishing communities.”

Contemporary Evolution

Currently, when sailors from across the Pacific – from the Fijian islands, the Micronesian region and Aotearoa – come to Lifou, they analyze boats together, refine the construction and eventually sail side by side.

“We don’t just copy the traditional forms, we make them evolve.”

Comprehensive Vision

According to Tikoure, instructing mariners and advocating environmental policy are linked.

“It’s all about how we involve people: who has the right to navigate marine territories, and what authority governs which activities take place on it? Heritage boats serve as a method to initiate that discussion.”